The present disclosure relates generally to methods for selectively altering a predetermined portion or an external member in contact with the predetermined portion.
Since the inception of semiconductor technology, a consistent trend has been toward the development of smaller device dimensions and higher device densities. As a result, nanotechnology has seen explosive growth and generated considerable interest. Nanotechnology is centered on the fabrication and application of nano-scale structures, or structures having dimensions that are often 5 to 100 times smaller than conventional semiconductor structures.
Nano-imprint lithography was initiated as a process to achieve nanoscale structures or features (about 100 nm or smaller) with high throughput and relatively low cost in structures such as, for example, molecular electronic devices. During the imprinting process, the nanoscale features are transferred from a mold to a moldable (e.g., polymer) layer. Nanowires are included in the category of nano-scale structures that may be fabricated via nano-imprinting.
Nanowires are wire-like structures having at least one linear dimension (e.g., diameter) ranging from about 1 nm to about 200 nm. Nanowires are suitable for use in a variety of applications, including functioning as conventional wires for interconnection applications or as semiconductor devices. Nanowires are the building blocks of many potential nano-scale devices, such as nano-scale field effect transistors (FETs), p-n diodes, light emitting diodes (LEDs) and nanowire-based sensors, to name a few.